His 2011 appointment as interim sheriff lasted until the end of 2012, according to the county. In January 2013, a new term began.

A year went by before the county discovered that the sheriff had not signed a new oath of office form, according to a statement from the county. The issue was discovered as county officials were responding to a records request in January. Garrett then signed a new oath on Feb. 3, 2014, and was again sworn in, said Sgt. Bob Ray, a sheriff's office spokesman.

Ray said it's unclear how the oversight happened and that the county is not aware of the issue occurring before.

So, was Garrett always the sworn sheriff? The county says, yes. And state officials say it's a county matter.

The Oregonian first inquired about the issue last week. Philip Bransford, county spokesman, responded via email:

"(T)he Sheriff recently signed his oath of office document, but he was the duly sworn Sheriff of Washington County prior to that point. This is because Pat Garrett was appointed Sheriff by the Board of Commissioners effective Nov. 30, 2011, at which point he took the oath of office in compliance with state law. The Sheriff was then elected to that office on May 15, 2012, so the oath he took in 2011 continued with full effect."

Darrell Fuller, general manager of the Oregon State Sheriffs' Association, said that when officials take an oath of office, it does not expire until someone new is elected and takes an oath.

"There is no implicit or explicit expiration on that oath of office," he said.

The Oregon Secretary of State's office does not have jurisdiction over county sheriff offices, said Tony Green, an office spokesman. The Secretary of State also does not have jurisdiction over the manner in which sheriffs are sworn into their positions.

Elmer Dickens, assistant county counsel, asked that The Oregonian contact Bransford, the county spokesman, with questions. On Wednesday night, the county released a statement, explaining its position.

Here is the county's full statement:

Response to the Oregonian questions concerning Sheriff Pat Garrett's signing of the Oath of Office.

Pat Garrett was appointed by the Washington County Board of Commissioners as Sheriff on November 30, 2011. This appointment was to fulfill the remainder of Rob Gordon's original term as Sheriff through December 31, 2012.

This original Oath of Office has no expiration date. Pat Garrett signed an original Oath of Office as Sheriff on November 22, 2011, when the Board of Commissioners made the decision to appoint him as Sheriff.

In January of this year, after an investigation into a records request, the County discovered that Sheriff Garrett did not sign a new Oath of Office following his election to Sheriff in May 2012. Immediately after this discovery, per ORS 204.020, Sheriff Garrett signed another Oath of Office in February of this year.

The Sheriff's authority has remained uninterrupted since his original oath in November 2011. Case law makes it very clear that once a person is elected and qualified for an office, they hold that office until their successor is elected and qualified.

The County Clerk and the newly elected official are responsible for ensuring the proper paperwork is filed after the election. There have been no tort claims filed concerning the Oath of Office paperwork.

When asked about it, Sheriff Pat Garrett wrote, "The Oath of Office I took in November, 2011, has just as much meaning as the one I took in February of this year. The oath is my solemn promise to serve the people of Washington County in very important ways as long as I'm Sheriff. The oath has no expiration date. This promise is to support the Constitution of the United States, the laws thereof, the Charter of this county, the Sheriff's Office policies and procedures, and to perform my duties as Sheriff to the best of my ability. Of course it's an honor to be able to take the oath and have done so repeatedly during my entire professional life in the military and law enforcement. The first oath I took as an Army Private has just as much meaning to me as the oath I took when I was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. The same is true during the time it's been my privilege to serve in public safety."

The Sheriff's Office would like to thank the public for bringing this to our attention so the proper paperwork could be completed.